by PRIYANKA DAS GUPTA
In November 2015, Manisha Pailan, a 23-year-old girl from Hasanpur Village, West Bengal, was attacked with acid PHOTO/News Track
Two years after acid was thrown on her face, Monisha Pailan is still awaiting justice. Last July, the Calcutta high court had issued an interim order asking the Bengal government to pay a compensation of Rs 3 lakh to her. This was the first acid attack compensation verdict in Bengal after the Supreme Court order.
Yet, on International Women’s Day, Monisha posted a video on Facebook expressing her anguish at how her abuser had still not been punished. Miscreants had thrown acid on her face on November 17, 2015, when she was returning home from a computer centre. She was admitted to hospital and was under treatment for a month. Her father had lodged an FIR with Joynagar police station naming Salim Haldar and some other youths of the same locality. Salim is Monisha’s former husband. Monisha got a divorce from him in May 2015.
Recently, Monisha, who is studying history at Shibpur Dinobandhu College, had chanced upon Gurmehar Kaur’s video. “I was very inspired by the way she spoke her mind in that video. I liked the format. We wanted to do something like that. Along with Debaparna Kundu and Suparna Paul, we decided to make this video,” Monisha says.
In her video which has gone viral, Monisha flashes posters that tell the story of her life post-attack. Much like the Gurmehar campaign, Monisha’s video just has her flashing posters. While Gurmehar’s video has a soft piano keys in the background, Monisha’s video is stark and has no audio at all. Draped in a sari, it shows her standing with a bunch of posters in her hand. Her face is covered with a black dupatta. After introducing herself, she says through her poster: “Salim continues to threaten me on Facebook. The other accused are out on bail and they move around in front of my eyes. Yet, in front of society, it is me who is branded as the culprit. I am questioned for my attire and the way I conduct myself.”
On International Women’s Day, Monisha has vowed to fight back. “I want to give courage to other acid victims and stand beside them. Most importantly, I will no longer cover my face,” reads her poster as she unmasks herself. “Will you feel scared to see my scars and curl up your eyebrows or ask the relevant questions?” she finally asks.
The Times of India for more